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Snow Slime

Ingredients: 4 oz of white glue, 1/2 tsp baking soda, optional glitter, 1.5 TBSP contact lense solution, 1 TBSP insta-snow, 4 oz water.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Making Cards

How appropriate for Valentine's Week. Set up your table with construction paper and either markers, crayons, or colored pencils. Stickers are great as well. If you have the right age, place out scissors and on each piece of paper, draw out a heart shape for practicing scissor skills. You can pre-cut these as well. Show the children that you can decorate the front and inside of the card. You may place out name cards so they can practice writing their name as well. This whole p

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Symmetry Dropper Art

Set up each child with tissue paper cut into a heart shape. Fold these in half and hold down with tape just on the very edge. Set our cups or small containers or water with different colors of food dye (you could do just red and pink). Place a dropper at each spot. Let the children drop the colored water onto the tissue paper. (if you have a child who goes a little crazy with this, you can absorb extra water with a paper towel). Once they are down, carefully remove from table

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Play Dough Color Theory

Set your children up with red and white play dough. You can easily make your own play dough and save money. Give them equal amounts of red and white. Separate each color into 3-5 balls. Print out color mixing mat as a prompt, or just let them go for it. Set out regular play dough toys or keep it simple with just rollers and maybe 1-2 things to cut with. This is a wonderful way to show color mixing while building muscles for writing.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Red and White Mixing Observation

Set up your art table for mixing. Give each child red and white paint. I like to have individual palettes, filling some spots with red, some with white, and some blank, as to give the opportunity to make different mixtures varying amounts of each color. This allows the children to see what happens when there is more red or more white. Set out either a large sheet covering the table, or give individual sheets. This is about observation and process, not product.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Small World Play

Set up a small play area. Add in artic or tundra animals, various trees or plants that seem appropriate. Place on train table or separate table. Fill out the scene by painting a board or putting down felt to show a wintery ground cover. This really is up to you based off what is available to you. You can set this up the same way next January so it's not a waste to purchase specific items.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Bird Feeders

Set up children with individual spaces or together. Save up toilet paper rolls or paper towel rolls (if paper towel, cut in half or thirds). Set up each child with their own bin or tray with a shallow container or bowl with peanut butter, a spoon, and a container or bowl of bird seed and/or cereal. Let them scoop, spread, or roll the peanut butter onto the roll. next let them sprinkle or roll the seed/cereal onto the peanut butter.They can do as many as they'd like this way!

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Oobleck

Oobleck is amazing, just fyi. To make Oobleck, you need 2:1 ratio cornstarch:water. Cornstarch is fairly cheap and you can buy it in bulk. If this is your the first time making Oobleck, make it first and put it out in sensory bins or containers for the children to play with. If your kids have played with it before, give them each their own portion of cornstarch and water so they can mix and see what happens. Set out tool such as scoopers (or just spoons), little bowls, roller

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Tiny Stories

Make little cardboard or felt scenes. You can connect these to make a little book, leave them out, or do one at a time. You could have one large sheet on the table to share, or individual ones. Make little pieces that can show who, what, where, when, why. So characters, items for the characters, invitation for actions and conversations, etc. You may be able to find felt pieces premade, but in general you don't need much time or craft ability to make this.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Letter Writing

Fill trays or containers with sand. Place letter cards next to trays and let children explore making the shapes with their fingers. You can place a sheet of colored paper underneath the sand in the tray to add some fun.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Letter Shapes

Set up letter cards with objects for construction. This can be sticks, pipe cleaners, lego pieces, whatever you have that can work. Let the children practice creating the letter with objects on top of the written letter.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Letter Sounds

Pick a letter and make a sound bin! Find toys and objects that start with the same letter and place into a bin. Focus on the sound as you say the letter. Tape or write the letter to the bin. You can do one letter at a time or have a few different letter bins out together

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Number Patterns

For this math setup, we will be exploring patterns. You can do this a couple ways.

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Scales/Balance Measurement Exploration

Like many of our setups, this scales and balance exploration encompasses more than one subject. Here we will explore measuring weight and comparisons. Set up your space with a scale and objects to weigh. You can DIY your scale very easily. Use objects that are similar in weight per measurement. Ex- blocks made out of the same material. If you have something with equal weight increments (ex .2 lbs .3 lbs, .4lbs, etc) that would be best. If you don't have this but what it, you

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20212 min read

Mancala Board- Number Value

Set up your mancala boards and counters from earlier. If you are using disposable ones, then write a number in each hole. If you don't want to mess up your board, or want to be able to move the numbers around, either place a numbered card or sticker in or next to each spot. Attached are ones to print plus full 2D boards to print. Place bowl with counters next to each board. Have children place as many counters as the number calls for. Younger children can use number cards wit

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Mancala Board- Addition and Multiplication Theory

If you don't have one of these- you can make them super easy from egg cartons. Just sanitize the cartons well and you're good. You can either decorate them yourself (maybe just a clean one color for less distraction), or you can totally have the kids do so for a great double recycled project. Ask parents to bring these in the month or so before you start if you have a large group. I like to use glass stones, but you could use felt balls, pom poms, or even DIY stones from play

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Ice Painting

Explore more melting and color mixing. Fill an ice tray with water. Mix in different colors of food dye into each spot. Add in a popsicle stick to each spot. Every 30 mins to an hour, check on the freezing and move the stick upright as you can. You could also use extra popsicle sticks to lay like a grid to hold up the popsicle sticks in the tray, if you have extras on hand. To set up this exploration, take out the ice cubes and place in container or paint cup. You can let chi

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Ice and Salt Exploration

Let's explore more with melting. The night before this activity, pre-set up by making sure you have ice cubes. or even a sensory bin filled with water to freeze. You can add food dye to the cubes or block to give an added effect of color mixing while melting. When it's time for the set up, put out paint brushes and little bowls or containers filled with salt. Salt lowers the freezing point of the ice and will allow it to melt quickly. The children can sprinkle it on and use t

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Frozen Animal Rescue

Explore ice while developing fine motor skills. Set this project up the night before. In your sensory tub bins, place toy animals (cold weather ones would be great if you have them). Submerge in water. Color water with food dye if desired. Next, place in freezer. Check every 30 mins- hour to make sure animals are not all staying at the top or bottom (will be more fun if they are spread out). If you would like to have this project done outside of the bins, line with plastic wr

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

On Going Science Experiment- Temperature- Freezing

This ongoing science experiment is so incredibly easy to set up and features a essential yet uncomplicated concept. To set up- fill same size, clear containers with varying amounts of water. I like to use paint cups as we always have many on hand. Place these outside in an area the children can see when they arrive and leave school. If you leave this out at play time, your results will most likely be compromised due to the irresistible water-dumping situation you have created

Elizabeth Gruss

Jan 4, 20211 min read

Blossom Play School

Snow Slime

Making Cards

Symmetry Dropper Art

Play Dough Color Theory

Red and White Mixing Observation

Small World Play

Bird Feeders

Oobleck

Tiny Stories

Letter Writing

Letter Shapes

Letter Sounds

Number Patterns

Scales/Balance Measurement Exploration

Mancala Board- Number Value

Mancala Board- Addition and Multiplication Theory

Ice Painting

Ice and Salt Exploration

Frozen Animal Rescue

On Going Science Experiment- Temperature- Freezing